The Violation of Inner and Outer Boundaries in Political Persecution

One of the consequences of persecution for the individual is the experienced confusion of inner and outer worlds. With the help of a broadened concept of the transitional space, derived from Winnicott, we could understand the various psychological consequences of structural physical violence. The violation of the transitional space during physical violence can result in a transformation to an inorganic state, an introjection or incorporation of the bad object into the self, intrusive re-experiencing and shattered assumptions often seen long after psychotrauma. In this article a broadened and elaborated concept of transitional space is described. Therefore, several theoretical concepts, such as “inner and outer world” are discussed and defined which makes it possible to put them into practice of psychotherapy and research. An example is given of a documented case of imprisonment under extreme conditions in which the prisoners were able to build up a common transitional space in order to survive. In this case, the transitional space is not an aid for the passage from one developmental phase to another, but instead a way of keeping open the connection between the psychic inner world, the world of the prison and the free world outside the prison walls. It is suggested to extend the concept of the transitional space to this meaning.